The year’s second Grand Slam tournament gets underway in just under a week from now, and while all eyes will be on Rafael Nadal to see if he can continue to create history at Roland Garros, the women’s division remains as open as ever.

An asteroid has been named after him. Shakira put him in her music video for being an extraordinary world champion as a teenager. Reportedly, he is ten per cent owner of football giant Real Madrid but modestly calls himself a simple football lover.

Channel Seven’s run of covering the Australian summer of tennis will come to an end after 2019, with Channel Nine securing the rights to the Australian Open, as well as all lead-up events, for a five-year period beginning in 2020.